DRIFTWOOD

Anyone familiar with the Americana music scene knows this Upstate, New York-based
band has cut their teeth on a killer live show. With a never-ending tour schedule and a steady
buzz, they have built a very solid underground fan base. "The game has been live shows and
nose to the ground since the beginning," says guitarist/songwriter Dan Forsyth.

As well as a devout following and a sizable discography, the band's hard work has also
been a huge part of the inspiration for their music. The songs and arrangements have grown
out of time spent on the road, growing closer, learning with and from each other and
weathering the up's and down's of the journey together. "We have a truly special bond
creatively and personally. It's the driving force behind the music," violinist/songwriter Claire
Byrne adds.
It is with this bond, patience, determination and undying mutual love and respect for
music, the road, and their friendship, they have approached their latest offering, 'Tree of
Shade.'

"I'm struck by the gratitude that making music with my best friends/my other family
brings," says guitarist/songwriter Joe Kollar. "Even our producer (Simone Felice) and the
engineer (Pete Hanlon) became brothers in this process. Laying out some of your most intimate
moments and showing the rawest version of yourself is both scary and exhilarating but more
importantly, it reminds you why you chose music as the vehicle. It's the '66 Corvette that will
always take me back to the beauty and power of a group of people setting out to make
something together."

Their first album with a major producer, 'Tree of Shade' is a testament to the essence of
a song. Working alongside Felice, the band found themselves stripping things back way more
than they normally would. "Simone was all about finding the essence of the song and doing our
best to bring it out without distorting it or taking the arrangement too far."

The first single off of the Spring 2019 release is 'Lay Like You Do,' a stripped down
heartbreaker. “This was one of those songs that came out faster than I could write it down and
seemed sort of like plucking an apple off a tree," admits Forsyth. “The melody and chorus came
out of a dream and when I woke up, I wrote the rest real fast."

With the addition of drummer Sam Fishman (aka “Fish”) in 2021 and live music
returning to stages across the nation, the band is more than ready to get back out on the road.

THE PINKERTON RAID

The Pinkerton Raid’s Jesse James DeConto hails from New England, with dad’s guitar and mom’s radio tuned to Soulsville, The Village, Liverpool and Laurel Canyon, now mining foothills-folk in Durham, N.C., for songs AMERICANA-UK calls “anthemic.” With a new winter-themed covers release out in 2023, the band has been slotting at festivals with artists like Watchhouse, River Whyless, Sunny War, Amythyst Kiah and The Bones of JR Jones. “A fine blend of Beatles-esque dreamy folk,” says AMERICANA HIGHWAYS.